KLRI : KOREA LEGISLATION RESEARCH INSTITUTE

Ⅰ. Background and Purpose of Research

▶ Current Status and Tasks of Undergraduate Law

○ Current status of the Undergraduate Law Department

- Since the introduction of the law school system, the status of undergraduate faculty of law has greatly weakened. In some universities, it has been abolished or reorganized, and the curriculum is often at the level of law schools in the past. Currently, 61 universities nationwide maintain undergraduate law departments, maintain the traditional law school system, or exist in various forms including the name of 'law'

- Along with the decrease in the school-age population, the law department is undergoing restructuring nationwide, and the number of students is being reduced, the consolidation of departments, and the name of faculties of law is being changed

- Currently, undergraduate law departments across the country are in a big crisis, and unless some kind of system is in place, it can lead to the extinction of law education as well as undergraduate law

▶ The Necessity of the Legal Education Accreditation System

○ The necessity of the Legal Education Accreditation System

- The Legal Education Accreditation System is a system that systematically evaluates the quality of the law curriculum according to certain standards and publicly recognizes the competence and educational outcomes of educational institutions in charge of law education

- The system helps students grow into law students with the competencies required in the field, and helps them grow into preferred talents by corporate legal teams and law firms

- The Korean Law Professors Association Inc. intends to promote this system in earnest from 2025, and is seeking institutionalization through the establishment of an independent certification body and consultation with government ministries (Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Education)

 

Ⅱ. Contents

▶ Contents of the Legal Education Accreditation System

○ Significance of the Legal Education Accreditation System

- The Legal Education Accreditation System is an institutional device to systematically improve the quality of undergraduate law education and increase equity and social trust in educational opportunities

- Beyond simple test-oriented evaluation, a certification-oriented quality guarantee system is needed to comprehensively evaluate the law curriculum's system. faculty's expertise, and educational environment by educational institutions, and the accreditation system is a public system that improves the overall quality of education in the long term, including learning outcomes and teaching methods, unlike tests that measure short-term achievements

- It is desirable to establish “The Institute of the Korean Legal Education Accreditation System” with independence and publicity as the operating entity and to secure fairness in evaluation and operation through cooperation between the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Education, academia, and legal organizations

- The accreditation shall conduct qualitative and quantitative evaluations based on five criteria, including learning outcomes, curriculum, faculty, educational environment, and improvement plan, and shall be effective for four years in principle

- To increase the effectiveness of the system, joint certification programs or open portfolio systems should be established to ensure equity in educational opportunities, and barriers to entry into the system should be lowered by dualizing basic and advanced certification, but ranking should be prevented

- The accreditation results can be used in various fields such as law school entrance examinations, public institutions or private companies, and can serve as a basis for realizing the publicity and social responsibility of law

- The legal education accreditation system is a policy tool that enhances the accountability of educational institutions and the learning outcomes of students, and can function as a key system for normalizing undergraduate law education

▶ Legislative Measures for the Implementation of the Legal Education Accreditation System

○ Necessity of Legislation and Legislative Form

- To ensure that the legal education accreditation system serves as a viable solution to the collapse of undergraduate legal education and the decline of foundational legal competencies, supplementary legislative measures are essential. Furthermore, such measures are necessary to enable the effective integration of accreditation results into other legal frameworks.

- Rather than enacting an entirely new statute or revising multiple existing laws, the most effective and coherent approach is to amend the current Legal Education Support Act by introducing provisions specifically addressing the accreditation of university-level legal education programs. This approach is advantageous in terms of legislative coherence and practicality

○ Legislative Proposals by Key Issue

- Concrete legislative alternatives and draft provisions are proposed for each of the following key issues: scope of accreditation, accrediting authority, accreditation standards and procedures, and utilization of accreditation results.

- The accreditation should apply to universities that offer bachelor’s degree programs in law. The Minister of Justice should serve as the accrediting authority, with the possibility of delegating duties to a specialized agency to ensure professional competence.

- Compared to other voluntary accreditation systems, the legal education accreditation system should be designed to ensure fairness and transparency. Essential matters such as accreditation application, cost-sharing, revocation of accreditation, duration of validity, and post-accreditation oversight should be stipulated by statute, while more detailed and technical provisions may be delegated to subordinate legislation.

- To make accreditation meaningful in practice, relevant laws must be amended to allow for its consideration in admissions and selection processes. These include the Act on the Establishment and Operation of Law Schools, the National Public Officials Act, the Framework Act on Qualifications, the Certified Judicial Scriveners Act, and the Certified Labor Attorneys Act, among others. These amendments should explicitly provide that accreditation status may be used as a basis for admissions decisions, public sector hiring, or qualification eligibility.

 

Ⅲ. Expected Effects

▶ Revitalization of undergraduate law education

○ Revitalization of undergraduate law education

- Undergraduate law education is expected to be activated by the introduction of the legal education accreditation system. In particular, by giving additional points to undergraduate students at universities that have been objectively evaluated for certification by the “Institute of the Korean Legal Education and Accreditation (tentative name)”, it is possible to arouse interest in law to undergraduate students who wish to graduate school of law

- The accreditation institute under the Korean Law Professors Association Inc. will promote accreditation work in earnest from 2025 to improve the quality of undergraduate law education and secure competitiveness. The certification system is expected to be an important means to not only survive undergraduate law departments, but also to popularize law education, improve legal sentiment, and improve the system in the long run

▶ Organic Connection with Law School Education and Enhancement of Legal Competence

○ Strengthening the Linkage between Undergraduate and Law School Education and Achieving Synergy Effects

- With the introduction of the legal education accreditation system, students who have completed certain legal theory courses at the undergraduate level can enter law school having already secured basic legal competencies, allowing them to participate effectively in classes.

- Even when law school instructors teach practical case law, students’ understanding is high, enabling classes to be conducted in a way that simultaneously ensures the quality of teaching and focus on learning. This improvement in educational quality can indirectly contribute to enhanced learning outcomes in the bar examination.

○ High level of interest in basic law and theory of law

- Currently, graduate students at law schools are in a structure where they are forced to take the bar exam only because they are concentrating on the bar exam, so they cannot take the bar exam properly even if they are interested in the optional courses of the bar exam

- In particular, basic law is the area of law that suffers the most damage, and for example, if additional points are given to taking basic law courses in the certification items of the legal education accreditation system, the crisis of basic law may be overcome